Hi!!!! My name is Emalee Smith and I am a Senior, majoring in Communication Studies. Outside of being a Hawk Tale Player, I am a member of UNCW’s hip hop dance crew Physical Graffeeti. I have been dancing since I was 7 years old, so I guess you could say it’s one of my passions! I also enjoy hanging out with my family and my friends, driving to the beach to watch the sunset, and attending different concerts. I love being a Hawk Tale Player because I enjoy going to different elementary schools within our community to entertain great students with exciting stories. This is my second performance class at UNCW, and I can’t wait to continue growing as a performer!

Hello to whomever may be reading my bio! My name is Meg and I am a junior at UNCW majoring in Communication and minoring in Business. I am in Pi Sigma Epsilon, the Business Sales and Marketing Fraternity on campus, and am currently interning for Loyale Studio, a clothing and food company based in Raleigh and San Francisco, California (I know - cool, right?!). I enjoy spending my time being active with friends and family, whether that be biking, surfing, running, working out, hiking, rock climbing, or taking walks. I have a cat named Dog (I know - weird...), and I hope to study abroad in Switzerland, Croatia, or Germany next spring. My friends would describe me as fun and funny, and someone who is always down to drop everything and just go.

It has been a joy to be able to share my dad's childhood stories through the Hawk Tale Player troupe. I have sincerely loved being able to tell and perform his adventures with the children who attend school in our community. This is definitely something I will miss dearly when the semester finishes at the end of this month.

I encourage you to check out the other HT Players bios to learn more about us and what we do! GO SEAHAWKS!

Hey everyone! My name is Marissa Makar and I am a senior here at UNCW! This may, I will earn my B.A. in Communication Studies with a focus in Integrated Marketing. Aside from being a UNCW Hawktale Player, I am a member of the Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society. Some of my favorite things to include relaxing on the beach, reading a good book, and listening to some interesting podcasts! This is my very first performance class and I'm excited to see how I grow as a performer throughout the semester!

Hello! My name is Abbie Kingdon and I am a senior at UNC Wilmington. I am a Communication Studies Major, my focus is Digital Media Production and I absolutely adore what I study! I love being being a camera and/or organizing a production. In addition, one of my passions is photography, specifically live music performances. Some of my other hobbies include: cooking, CrossFit, and finding adventure in everything! I love going to new places, trying new foods, and making fun memories. My plan after graduation is to potentially find work in production or dive further into my photography business. I am excited to start telling my stories as a Hawk Tale Player and sure I will enjoy this fun & new experience performing!

Hi everyone! My name is Haley Dumas. I am a Junior Communication Studies student at UNCW, and I love it! I have many different interests such as traveling, fashion, and fitness.This summer I had the opportunity to study abroad in London, Paris, Milan, Rome, and Florence. This was a whirlwind trip for me full of excitement and possibilities. This trip to Europe opened my eyes to what truly makes me happy, which is acting. I feel great joy when I can make even one audience member laugh or smile while I am performing. I enjoy it so much; that this is the third performance class I have taken at UNCW. This semester, I am more excited than ever because I get to bring some really fun characters to life for young students. Kids are the best audience members because they are raw and honest. I look forward to positively influencing their lives and learning from them so that they can influence mine

My name is Tabitha Biear, a senior student at UNCW majoring in Communication Studies. I moved to Wilmington from town called Calabash North Carolina to continue my education after high school. Some of my favorite things to do are beachin’ it with my dog Pax, taking dance classes, going to the gym, and ANYTHING involving food. Thank you for listening along with me as I tell my stories inspired by my family members as a UNCW Hawk Tale Player!

Shianne is a junior at UNCW who is majoring in Communication Studies. She grew up in a small town where she spent her time riding horses, fishing, and playing on a travel softball team until high school. She loves FaceTiming her pups back home, reading, watching movies and going to the beach with her friends! Shianne participated in the Disney College Program last year and she plans to return to find a permanent position within the company once next graduates next spring. This is her first time taking a performance class and she is really excited to see how everything goes!

Hi there! My name is Cameron Abresch and I am a senior at UNCW studying Communication Studies. I am originally from Salisbury, Maryland and decided to move south for school. After I graduate I plan to move to Washington DC and work to save up money to travel. My top three destinations (at the moment!) are Ireland, the Netherlands, and Thailand. In addition to traveling, I love reading, eating a ridiculous amount of pasta, and re-watching The Office on Netflix. I have one very fat cat named Frisky, who loves gravy treats and naps in the sunshine. My parents, Lisa and Larry, are the inspiration behind my stories.

Now this is a story all about how his life got flipped turned upside down. We’d like to take a minute just listen to us speak, tell you all about how Alejandro became the Hawk Tale Player of the Week.

Having been a Hawk Tale Player in the past, Alejandro is ecstatic to come back this year as assistant director and is looking forward to sharing more stories to the Wilmington community!

Born in Colombia, South America and immigrating to the United States by the age of four, Alejandro grew up and lived in Charlotte, NC most of his life. Whenever he isn’t working at Journeys selling socks or doing schoolwork, Alejandro is managing his local clothing brand, Good Fortunes Apparel. As a Sophomore student and Communication Studies major here at UNCW Alejandro, Alejandro loves making people happy and meeting new people.

This week, the Storytelling Troupe traveled to Wrightsville Beach Elementary. We performed for classrooms that were welcoming and loved interacting with our troupe. Wrightsville Beach's students asked thoughtful questions and were a joy to perform for. This weeks outstanding performer is Brooke, who shares a story about a penguin who has a bit of a problem controlling his hiccups, check it out here!

This is another video from Gregory. Featuring on this video is ,Brittany, a new and talented member of our troupe . This is her first year in storytelling but as you can tell she is a natural performer!

The staff and students at the International School at Gregory Elementary were beyond hospitable. The UNC-Wilmington Storytelling Troupe performed with enthusiasm and energy. It was truly a rewarding and fulfilling experience to work with these elementary students. I thoroughly believe that we as adults can continuously learn from enthusiastic learners such as these students. This week's outstanding storyteller is Matthew Garcia.

The staff and students at the International School at Gregory Elementary were beyond hospitable. The UNC-Wilmington Storytelling Troupe performed with enthusiasm and energy. It was truly a rewarding and fulfilling experience to work with these elementary students. I thoroughly believe that we as adults can continuously learn from enthusiastic learners such as these students. This week's outstanding storyteller is Matthew Garcia.

It was such a wonderful time in Forest Hills Global Elementary. Our troupe definitely received a warm welcome from the moment we walked in the door. It was such a great pleasure to perform in front of the students and staff. The kids were very interactive and cheerful that it made our day! This week our Storyteller of the week is Haley Dumas. She is already proving to be one of our best even though this is her first year as a Storyteller. Congrats Haley!

The UNCW Storytelling Troupe made their second week stop at Winter Park Elementary a performance to remember. The Winter Park staff and students welcomed the Troupe with their usual Southern hospitality. In turn, the story tellers reciprocated with outstanding renditions of their chosen children’s narration. Gil Niez stood above the crowd with his adaptation of Margo Fallis’, “The lost whale.” Take a moment to watch. I’m sure you will agree!

The UNCW Storytellers traveled to Alderman Elementary last week. The students at Alderman were wonderful and a joy to perform for. They expressed their love and enjoyment for all of our stories, but there was one in particular that stood out to them: Stephanie's Ponytail by Robert Munsch. Check it out here!